The First Thing
by Eltrut
Summary: Finally, it was his turn to yell at the other for recklessness. Chapter 166 Spoilers. Maybe KuroFay, maybe not.


The Celes Arc depresses me, and probably wont end up in a happy way, so here is myself writing a happy fic. Based off the spoilers for ch.166. Kuro is made of love!!! What with cutting off his own arm to save Fay/Yuui from his own explode-a-curse.. (sigh) KuroYuui if you like (KuroFay sounded better...) but it doesn't have to be.

If I owned Tsubasa, no one would lose body parts TT

* * *

The first thing, of all things, to tell him that he still lived was an itch. On his nose. Meaning to raise his arm and scratch it, he realized his arm was numb. Had he slept on it? Odd. But as he opened his eyes to a dim and shabby room, he remembered just why exactly him still being counted amongst the living might be questionable in the first place.

Turning his stiff neck, he saw that the place where a normal, healthy arm once protruded was now a bloody mass of bandages.

Closing his eyes again and letting his head fall back, he sighed. So, the little manjuu bun had managed to get them out of that awful country and, it seemed, somewhere safe. For now.

He was thinking about how someone must have pumped him full of pain killer because he didn't feel anything, when the only door creaked open.

He opened his eyes when he felt a presence beside him, and beheld the Mage.

Said Mage looked terrible, though he doubted he looked any better. Dark circles under his eyes were obvious on his pale skin and his hair, scrubbed clean, was a tumbled mess around his shoulders. A robe sizes too big was the only thing the Mage had managed to obtain for a new change of clothes.

"How do you feel?" The Mage asked quietly, his voice hoarse.

"…Fine." Kurogane managed to croak, resisting the urge to add that after all, he was only missing his arm.

The Mage blinked and sighed, "That's good, then." Then his face hardened and before Kurogane knew it, he had hauled the ninja up against the wall to a sitting position by grabbing a fist full of Kuro's own oversized robe.

Kuro blinked in astonishment.

"What the _hell_," the Mage snarled, "did you think you were doing?"

Kuro's own temper was reaching boiling point. "Saving-"

But the Mage spoke over him, "Saving? _Saving?!_" The Mage hovered over him, his scowling face close to Kuro's own. "You call this saving? You cut off your _arm_!" The Mage's voice cracked, and his gaze shifted to the bandages covering the wound. "You cut off your arm for me," he added, looking down at his fist clutching the folds of fabric.

"You haven't gotten it though your empty head yet?" Kuro asked. "That you're worth saving."

The Mage scoffed softly but still didn't look up, and Kuro suspected that he was trying not to cry.

"You're an idiot," the Mage murmured wetly. Kuro hmphed and leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. He didn't open them until a while later, the Mage spoke softly.

"I'm sorry." He released Kuro and let his hand rest flat on his chest. "I'm so sorry, for everything."

"I…understand, what you might have felt." Kuro said slowly, thinking about his parents, and where he might have ended up had the witch not sent Tomoyo to him. "You were bound by things long before we met."

"I didn't know," the Mage said, raising one watery eye to Kuro's face. "I didn't know anything about you, any of you before everything started, all I could think of then was how I had to bring him back, I didn't know…." He trailed off.

"I didn't know that I'd come to love all of you so much," he sniffed.

Kuro felt his lips twitch but didn't say anything, though he was quite honestly touched.

The Mage heaved a shaky sigh. "Thank you, anyway….for saving me."

Kuro smirked faintly, well aware of the change that was happening with the Mage's way of thinking.

"Yeah well, you said you wanted me to save you, didn't you? Back then in Ōto."

The Mage looked up, startled, surprise evident in his wide blue eye.

The moment, however, was ruined when Kuro winced at the throb of pain in his shoulder. The expression seemed to put the Mage into action. "Here!" he said, and fished out a bottle from some hidden pocket and forced it into Kuro's hand. "It will dull the pain," he said, "until we can get you to someone a little more proficient than I at healing."

Kuro grunted in reply and raised the bottle in his fist, only to stare at it, his eyebrow beginning to twitch.

It still had the stopper in it.

He raised his eyes to the Mage, who flushed and looked abashed. "Sorry…er, here…"

Kuro watched his companion, his gaze downcast as he worked the bottle open, and he couldn't help but think that they made the sorriest pair in the history of every planet they had ever set foot upon.

The bitter medicine drunk, and Kurogane sighing in relief in his spot against the wall, the Mage turned to leave.

"By the way," he began quietly, his back to the other, "We really haven't been….properly introduced." He spun on the spot and held out his hand. "Yuui."

"Heh…Kurogane." Kuro took Yuui's hand, his lips twisted in a grin/smirk/smile, the other's face sharp and new.

"Nice to meet you."

* * *

Yes well, I realized the aftermath of Celes may not be this happy, as I really don't think Kuro will survive it, but there you go. And after everything, I just wanted Yuui to finally see how selfless Kuro is, and just accept his savior :P And Kuro would still own with one arm, its just that for the purpose of this fic, the bottle defeated him. I want Yuui to mother him!

Do you think Kuro is just weird, or did he always know Fay wasn't his real name? Hmmm...

Review, and CLAMP will bring Kuro's arm back from the dead.


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